Oklahoma Spotlight: State Rep. Mike Osburn

The “Oklahoma Spotlight” highlights elected officials in our state and community. 

Meet State Representative Mike Osburn, a friend to the business community, who represents House District 81 in Edmond. 

Chamber: Can you please share with us brief background on where you grew up and what inspired you to pursue public service?

Rep. Osburn: I grew up in Tahlequah which was great. Graduated from Tahlequah High School in 1986. Graduated from Oklahoma Christian University in 1990 and then University of Oklahoma College of Law in 1993.

Upon graduation from law school, I became campaign manager and then deputy chief of staff for Governor Frank Keating. It was then I decided that I wanted to one day be a public servant. I ran unsuccessfully for the State House in 2000 and then, after a 16-year recess, my wife and I were approached, and I decided to try it again. We decided that if we weren’t willing to try to be part of the solution, we had no right to complain about the problem.

Chamber: Earlier in your career, you worked for Oklahoma Governor Frank Keating.  How did this experience shape your approach to state government?

Rep. Osburn: Governor Keating is the very definition of a public servant. He always worked with all the stakeholders and across the aisle to create public policy that provided not his solution but the BEST solution to problems and issues facing the state. I have a frame right beside the door in my office that says, “It’s not about you” and has the date of my first successful election in 2016. It’s there to remind me that the voters of HD81 sent me there to fix problems and help them have a better life, not to climb ladders or serve myself. I learned that approach from Gov. Keating and I try to pattern my public service after that.

Chamber: You are known as a legislator who is not afraid to engage in complex legislative initiatives.  Can you share with us a particularly challenging issue you’re working to address this session?  

Rep. Osburn: I am working on several pretty heavy lifts this session. One of them is felony sentencing modernization where we are trying to organize and modernize a sentencing structure that is very much unorganized. The other, that I’m sure resonates more with this audience, is the reorganization of the Department of Commerce. Sen. Kristen Thompson and I are trying to work with all of the stakeholders to craft legislation to ensure our business recruitment and retention are laser focused on bringing new industry and jobs to the state while also ensuring our local communities get the attention and services they need to increase competitiveness and enhance economic opportunities across the state.